Many people in the village will remember Fiona Bailey and some will already be aware of the sad news of her sudden death at the age of just 51 a few weeks ago. Fiona’s family have been in touch with us and they have asked us to publish this tribute which we are very happy to do. Fiona and family lived in Bishop Monkton from 2007 until 2022 and Fiona was heavily involved in various aspects of village life including the School and the Anglican Church. The family have also told us that a remembrance service is being planned to be held in the Church soon. Here is their tribute to Fiona:-

“The family is sadly announcing the passing of Fiona Bailey on the 27th of November. Fiona was born in Tema, Ghana on the 16th of February 1973 to her loving parents Linda and John. She was the youngest of three children, with her older sister Diane and older brother Allan. This provided her with a stable foundation from which she became the lovely friend, mum and wife that everyone came to know and love.

The family moved to Bahrain when she was 4 and when she was 11 she went to boarding school in Oxford. She achieved Advanced National Certificate in Equine Business Management and BHS Level 2 which qualified her to teach horse riding. She met Dennis in 1991 in a country bar in Bahrain and they were inseparable. They married in 1992 in Bahrain and lived in the USA for 15 years. Her daughter Ellie was born in Savannah, Georgia in September 2002 and her twins Oliver and Max were born in Portsmouth, Virginia in December 2005.

Once Dennis retired from the US Marine Corps they decided to move to the UK. They arrived in the UK in April 2007 and moved to Bishop Monkton in June. While waiting to settle in, she took over the running of the local pre-school “Puddleducks”, improving the pre-school setting. She settled into village life very well, especially when Ellie started school. She became a member of friends of school and was a governor of the Bishop Monkton Primary School for many years. She was very active in the village, helping run the Friends of School Pie and Peas Quiz Night for several years and other school activities. She loved organising get-together’s with her friends from Bishop Monkton, like trick or treating with the kids and camping trips. Easter and Christmas gatherings were almost always hosted by her.

Fiona was also an active member of St. John the Baptist Church where she helped with Sunday services and refreshments, and had often led the Palm Sunday procession from the school to the church with Peanuts the pony. She also actively supported the Bishop Monkton Scout Group for over 5 years.

She was so proud of her children and all their accomplishments, all three of them are studying in university. She was a loving wife, mother and friend and will be greatly missed by us all.

A remembrance service will be held at the church. The date will be announced soon.”

This tribute will also be lodged in the ‘History-People-In Memoriam’ section of this website here.